Alumni Impact - Tina Diamond
Posted: September 14th, 2023
Tina Diamond BA, BSW, MSW, RSW, MBA, CHRL
UW MBA Consortium graduation: 2016
Occupation: Chief Executive Officer for the Children's Aid Society of Oxford County.
Individual support and unique learning help UW MBA Consortium alumnus grow her career
Before pursuing her MBA, Tina Diamond '16 was a practicing social worker seeking a new opportunity to learn more about leadership, organizational health, and strategic thinking and planning.
She knew the UW MBA Consortium would be a great fit because "it provided a balance of administrative learning and learning related to organizational culture and wellbeing." "There was a variety of classes to choose from, and classes were small enough that our professors were able to get to know us and our individual learning goals," Diamond says.
Her professors and classmates pushed her to think critically about her work and to apply her ideas to a new level. "I began considering how my current practice could expand from individual support to a macro level where I was engaging community partners and service users to create better support for the overall community," Diamond says.
The diversity in her classes allowed Diamond to consider different perspectives and meet colleagues from around the world, providing her with significant opportunities to consider both bias and privilege, and the organizational impacts of both.
She fondly recalls the emphasis on collaboration, especially when working with people in different life phases and balancing work, family and education responsibilities. "The emphasis on collaboration taught additional leadership skills, compassion and time management," Diamond says. "I met some incredible professors and fellow students; I consider myself so fortunate to have had these experiences."
Diamond currently holds the role of chief executive officer for the Children's Aid Society of Oxford County. Her organization, which provides child protection services and support to Oxford County in Southwestern Ontario, Canada, advocates for and protects the rights of children and youth and is a leader for change in its communities.
Diamond believes the UW MBA Consortium program broadened both her perspective and knowledge. "I was provided with the learning and coaching to become skilled in the financial and strategic aspects of organizational leadership," she says.
She has now advanced her career from a direct service provider to an administrator, where she supports advocacy efforts at a provincial and federal level.
"The UW MBA Consortium program allowed me to continue my education while maintaining my career and being with my family," Diamond says. "I received many opportunities to think critically about current events while learning the foundational knowledge and skills that supported me in achieving my career goals. The entire experience was fantastic." |
